Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

When they return from summer recess on August 18, lawmakers in California will immediately faced with tough decisions on how to respond to Texas redistricting: https://www.kcra.com/article/texas-redistricting-hearings-newsom-decides-california/65493018

After getting first to Trump's priorities, Texas Republicans finally got around to lesser concerns for them - Texas flood relief - but started with a four-hour "attaboy" session that drew the ire of Democratic Rep. Ann Johnson: https://www.eenews.net/articles/attaboys-dominate-texas-flood-hearing-as-lawmakers-shy-from-assigning-blame/

...Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd testified that his department struggles to contact local emergency managers, who themselves have almost no minumum requirements for training or certification: https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/organizational-failures-highlighted-hearing-deadly-central-texas-flooding/

...Bipartisan blasting of Kerr County officials, who have opted to lower their local property taxes instead of addressing urgent needs to overhaul river flood warning systems: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/politics/2025/07/23/texas-lawmakers-blast-river-authority-for-pathetic-decision-not-to-upgrade-flood-warning-system/85350653007/

One flood won't fix Texas' drought - while AI data centers are sucking up more and more and more water: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2025-07-25/texas-is-still-in-drought-and-ai-data-centers-are-quietly-guzzling-up-water/

The Trump administration has earmarked over $1 billion for a massive detention center for ICE detainees (for now) in El Paso: https://www.chron.com/news/article/trump-awards-1-2-billion-contract-operate-texas-20782668.php

Senator Ted Cruz, with help from Senator John Cornyn, has filed a bill to target people or groups suspected of funding "antisemitic, pro-illegal" protests with RICO charges: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/ted-cruz-ice-palestine-protests-20782531.php

A Vermont school superintendent was detained and aggresively questioned by customs and immigration agents on Monday at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport in an incident that his board back home calls "deeply disturbing": https://www.advocate.com/news/vermont-gay-citizen-detained-cbp

A growing number of conservative influencers are expressing regret having followed Joe Rogan to Texas and heading back west - toodle-oo, y'all: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-14930373/conservative-stars-regret-california-texas-austin-rogan.html

Tejano titan Bobby Pulido is said to be considering a pivot into politics, specifically in his native Edinburg to challenge GOP Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/24/bobby-pulido-exploratory-committee-congress-south-texas/

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